1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a printer for performing printing, for example, by transferring and fixing toner onto a continuous sheet of paper while transporting the continuous sheet of paper.
2. Description of the Related Art
As a related-art printer, there is an electrophotographic printer in which before printing of a certain page is completed, a sheet of paper for a page next to the certain page can be taken in so that printing of the next page can be started. In this type printer, when a jam (paper jam) is detected at the time of execution of the printing process for a plurality of pages before and after a certain page, contents of the pages which are under the printing process at the point of time of detection of the jam are recorded so that recorded contents of the pages can be printed after the jam is eliminated. According to this technique, after pages which are present in the printer at the point of time of detection of the jam and which are just after transferring of toner and in the middle of fixing of toner are invalidated, contents of these pages can be reprinted newly (JP-A-61-266285).
For example, in a printer of the type in which a continuous sheet of paper is transported along a relatively long transport path, even a page which has just passed through a transfer portion having no relation to a jam at a point of time of detection of the jam or even a page which is passing through a fixing portion at a point of time of detection of the jam can be used as a valid page without any problem in a print result because toner can be fixed completely on this page if this page is passed through the fixing portion as it is.
In the related-art printer, however, after all pages existing in the printer at the point of time of detection of the jam are invalidated, the contents of the pages are reprinted. Accordingly, part of the pages having no relation to the jam must be printed duplicately and wastefully though they can be used effectively without necessity of reprinting.
Even in the case where duplicate printing is made, it is impossible to specify the range of pages because page numbers for duplicate printing vary according to jamming places if jams are detected in a plurality of places.